So, I drove through a drive thru a couple weeks ago and it had one of those really low wall on the side to guide you threw it. I heard a bit of a scraping noise so I assumed it was the wheel, checked it and saw nothing so I went on with my day....

Anyway, gave the car its first wash this past weekend and guess what I notice It is small enough to not notice unless you're looking for it, but it bothers me regardless.




Seeing as how this is my first nice car purchase, I'm not really sure what action to take. Is this something that some touch up paint can fix? Probably not, seems like it needs to be sanded down or something and repainted. Any ideas how much something like this would cost?

 

to repair it properly it would need to be sanded, possibly filling in gouges, primed and repainted.... and its best to repaint the whole piece/panel for a better blend.... lucky for you, its on the a-spec chin spoiler so the whole bumper doesnt need to be repainted. a competent body shop should be able to do this for under 200$. look around...

maaco could probably get you out the door for less then 100$ if you took it off the car. however im not a real big fan of their work (not top notch body work). but seeing as the damage is so low after its fixed it will never be seen.

then there is always the home repair.... sanding the area, cleaning it,, masking off the car, painting it yourself (and no, touch up paint probably wont work). this is by far the cheapest method of repair... 20$-25$ parts (paint, tape, cleaner) and your time.... quality may not be ideal but being so low you would probably never notice it....

and your final option is to leave it alone... its not metal so it wont rust, it probably didnt take away from the parts strength. so it is purely cosmetic

best of luck, i expect to get an update on the repair (since we both know its gonna get fixed if it bothers you as much as it would me) post pics

-onager

 

If its under $200 I'll probably just go ahead and get it fixed. I guess I'll ask the local dealerships for recommended body shops and get it taken care of after pay day.

Thanks

 

It's low enough touch up paint will cover it nicely. I did the same thing on my 2000 Accord some touch up paint and you couldn't even tell.

 

I remember my front bumper being repainted for about 250. It was all beat up from the road work being done in my area.

good luck and have the job done right or down the road it will look like crap.

 

It's really a bummer that you got damage on your new car..I feel for you!! But, look on the bright side, it's in an area that isn't too noticable, and you will be able to get it fixed fairly cheaply and you won't ever notice it. Good luck! That first dent or scratch on a new car is the worst!!!!

 

If it is part of the A-Spec kit, why not just replace the piece. I think it would be cheaper than repainting. Did the actual body sustain damage? Its hard to tell from the picture.

 

No, the actual body didn't sustain any damage. I just barely scrapped the little wall. Thanks for adding another option, I'll look into the price to replace the lip spoiler + install, and see how it compares to body shop quotes. If the difference isn't huge, it may be better to just go with the new lip soiler.

 

Even if the cost is a bit higher to replace, it will look better than a repaint.

 

The cost shouldn't be that much. It's the underside of the lip so it's not too bad. I would recommend going to different shops and getting quotes for it.